Chapter 10: Problem 49
Use Taylor's formula with \(n=2\) to find the quadratic approximation of \(f(x)=(1+x)^{k}\) at \(x=0\) ( \(k\) a constant). b. If \(k=3,\) for approximately what values of \(x\) in the interval [0,1] will the error in the quadratic approximation be less
Short Answer
Expert verified
The quadratic approximation for \((1+x)^k\) at \(x=0\) is \(1 + kx + \frac{k(k-1)}{2}x^2\). For \(k=3\), the approximation error is less than 0.01 when \(x \in [0, 0.1)\).
Step by step solution
01
Write Taylor's Formula
Taylor's formula for approximating a function near a point is given by: \[ f(x) \approx f(a) + f'(a)(x-a) + \frac{f''(a)}{2}(x-a)^2 + R_2(x) \]where \(R_2(x)\) is the remainder term. For the quadratic approximation, we focus on the terms up to \(\frac{f''(a)}{2}(x-a)^2\).
02
Compute Derivatives
The function is \(f(x) = (1+x)^k\). First, find the first and second derivatives of this function:1. First derivative: \[f'(x) = k(1+x)^{k-1}\]2. Second derivative:\[f''(x) = k(k-1)(1+x)^{k-2}\]
03
Evaluate Derivatives at \(x = 0\)
Evaluate the function and its derivatives at \(x = 0\):1. \(f(0) = (1+0)^k = 1\)2. \(f'(0) = k(1+0)^{k-1} = k\)3. \(f''(0) = k(k-1)(1+0)^{k-2} = k(k-1)\)
04
Formulate the Quadratic Approximation
Substitute the evaluated derivatives into the Taylor's formula:\[f(x) \approx 1 + kx + \frac{k(k-1)}{2}x^2\]
05
Determine the Remainder Term in Approximation
The remainder term \(R_2(x)\) for Taylor's series up to \(n=2\) is given by:\[R_2(x) = \frac{f'''(\xi)}{6}x^3\]where \(\xi\) is some point in the interval [0,x]. The third derivative is needed for error approximation:
06
Find the Third Derivative
Calculate the third derivative:\[f'''(x) = k(k-1)(k-2)(1+x)^{k-3}\]
07
Error Estimation for Specific k
Substitute \(k=3\) into the quadratic approximation and third derivative:1. Approximation: \(f(x) \approx 1 + 3x + 3x^2\)2. Third derivative: \(f'''(x) = 6(1+x)^0 = 6\)Use the error formula:\[|R_2(x)| = \left| \frac{6}{6}x^3 \right| = |x^3|\]The error \(|x^3| < 0.01\) must hold for accurate approximation.
08
Solve the Error Inequality
Solve \(|x^3| < 0.01\) to determine values of \(x\):\[x^3 < 0.01\]Take cube root:\[x < 0.1\]Thus, \(x\) should be in \([0, 0.1)\).
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Key Concepts
These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.
Taylor's Formula
Taylor's formula is a method widely used in mathematics to approximate functions using polynomials. It is especially useful when you want to find an approximation of a function near a specific point, say "a". The general structure of Taylor's formula is as follows:
- The function is approximated as a sum of its derivatives evaluated at that point "a" and multiplied by powers of the distance from "a", that is, \( (x-a) \).
- Mathematically, the Taylor approximation of order n can be expressed as: \[ f(x) \approx f(a) + f'(a)(x-a) + \frac{f''(a)}{2}(x-a)^2 + \ldots + R_n(x) \]
- This series expands up to n terms, where each term involves a derivative of higher order.
Error Estimation
Estimating the error in Taylor's polynomial approximation is crucial in understanding how accurate our approximation is. The error is represented as a remainder term, often denoted by \( R_n(x) \).
- This tells us how much the polynomial approximation differs from the actual function value.
- For \( n=2 \), the remainder \( R_2(x) \) is given by \[ R_2(x) = \frac{f'''(\xi)}{6}x^3 \], where \( \xi \) is a number between the approximation point "a" and "x".
- In practical applications, you often estimate the value of \( \xi \) to find a bound on the error.
Mathematical Derivatives
When dealing with Taylor's formulas, derivatives play a crucial role, as each term in the polynomial is a function of derivatives of different orders. Understanding derivatives is essential for constructing Taylor polynomials:
- The first derivative, \( f'(x) \), gives the slope of the tangent line to the function and helps introduce linear terms to the approximation. \[ f'(x) = k(1+x)^{k-1} \]
- The second derivative, \( f''(x) \), indicates the curvature of the function and allows for including quadratic terms. \[ f''(x) = k(k-1)(1+x)^{k-2} \]
- Higher derivatives, although not directly used in quadratic approximations, are important for assessing error terms. Here, the third derivative is: \[ f'''(x) = k(k-1)(k-2)(1+x)^{k-3} \]